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Where To Invest Around The World In 2014

Are you looking to diversify your investments, spreading your money around the world? It’s a great idea. A multinational investment strategy protects you from fluctuations in one region. But in today’s tumultuous world, with geopolitical upheaval and unsteady markets, where should you invest?

Daniel Altman may have what you need. In Foreign Policy’s Where To Invest Around The World, 2014 Edition, he offers some great insight. His Baseline Profitability Index (BPI) maps economic growth, financial stability, physical security, corruption, expropriation by government, exploitation by local partners, capital controls, and exchange rates. His goal: To map the total pre-tax return on investments in a region.

Baseline Profitability Index (BPI)

Darker countries indicate a higher score on Daniel Altman’s Baseline Profitability Index for 2014, meaning they are a better bet for foreign investment. The index considers asset growth, preservation of value, and repatriation of capital. Botswana ranks the highest in 2014 with a BPI value of 1.31; Venezuela ranks the lowest at 112, with a score of 0.63.

As Altman writes, the shifting global landscape has moved a lot in the past year: “In just the past 12 months, quite a lot has changed in the global investing environment. Some struggling economies have found their feet, notably in Europe, while others around the world have fallen victim to conflict. A few have improved their economic institutions, too; neighbors Greece, Macedonia, and Turkey all bolstered legal protections for investors, and nearby Azerbaijan strengthened its property rights.”

This year’s edition of the index has a few changes over last year. Most notably, a new source is used for measuring the likelihood of government expropriation. Altman is using the Index Of Economic Freedom in this 2014 edition.

The index suggests that not every fast growing country around the world is a great target for investment. You need to take into account the risks of each market — that’s the purpose of the index, after all. But it’s also important to make an educated decision. All indexes have their limits. For example, after switching to the Index Of Economic Freedom, China dropped from position 21 to 43 on the BPI. While the new approach is hopefully more accurate, it also illustrates why it’s important to understand the data.

Despite the change to the Index Of Economic Freedom, and shifts in the geopolitical landscape in the past year, India has maintained its position at number 6 on the index. Altman feels this is, “In large part because of the potential for real appreciation in the rupee.” He adds, “This may now be more likely than ever, thanks to Narendra Modi’s supposedly reform-minded government and the strong hand of Raghuram Rajan at the central bank.”